How many Indian mounds are within the borders of Conecuh County?

Map of Mound Island in Baldwin County, Ala.

This past Saturday, I accompanied my son’s Boy Scout Troop on a paddling trip to Mound Island, which is located in Baldwin County, deep in the Mobile-Tensaw River Delta.

Due to its location in the swampy delta, the only way to reach Mound Island is by boat, but it’s often visited by history lovers because it’s the home of the prehistoric Bottle Creek Indian Mounds.

On Saturday morning, we put in three canoes and two kayaks at the Rice Creek Landing near Stockton and paddled many miles across Briar Lake and the Tensaw River before following Bayou Jessamine to Bottle Creek and Mound Island. I assure you that this was a physically demanding trip, and I wouldn’t suggest attempting it alone or without an experienced guide. When I say that this was one of the most remote places I’ve ever been to within the borders of Alabama, that is not an understatement.

When we arrived at the island, we followed a rough trail through the jungle-like forest and eventually arrived at the base of the largest mound on the island, where we found a battered, old sign that noted that the island’s mounds were designated as a National Historic Landmark years ago. We proceeded to climb to the top of the mound and began to realize the immense amount of work it would have taken to construct the mound in such a remote place. We eventually returned to our boats, ate lunch and paddled back to our vehicles at Rice Creek Landing.

I’ve done a lot of exploring in my day, but Mound Island is one of the most fascinating places I’ve ever been to in Alabama. Later at home, I did some more research and learned that this site was occupied between 1250 and 1550 and contains more than 18 mounds. Archaeologists believe that it has gone relatively undisturbed over the years due to its remote location.

All of this got me to thinking about Indian mounds in Conecuh County. I don’t know if it’s an urban legend or not, but I’ve heard it told that when I-65 was being built through Conecuh County, workers cut a path through Indian mounds to make way for the highway. Some even say that this is why so many accidents occur on I-65, that is, these wrecks are the result of some type of curse brought on by the desecration of Indian burial sites.

I’m sure that at some point in the state’s past, a survey was done to locate and identify Indian mounds statewide. It would be interesting to know what this survey has to say about Indian mounds in Conecuh County. More than likely, we’d learn that we drive by or live near Indian sites that we’ve forgotten or failed to recognize over the years.

Last year, the University of Alabama’s Office of Archaeological Resources and Center for Economic Development established what’s called the Alabama Indigenous Mound Trail in an effort to celebrate the state’s ancient monumental architecture. Currently, there are no Conecuh County sites on this trail. The closest such site to Conecuh County is the Bottle Creek site that I visited on Saturday.

In the end, I’d be interested in hearing from any readers who have more information about Indian mounds in Conecuh County. I’d love to see these places for myself and document their locations for future generations. Local sites are bound to be easier to get to than Mound Island, so if you’re up for a field trip to a local site, please let me know.